Corruption
by Pvt Skittlez
Summary: What is the world like in 100 years? Earthquakes have left the world scarred, and Russia has taken over modern day Europe. in one of the countries there is an acre, where a 16 year old girl is about to make history.
1. Acre: Tanim

Corruption

**Years ago, The united nations fell to natural causes.**

**Some countries survived and re-inhabited these areas.**

**Russia, has named themselves the "Rules"**

**They rule over they're countries with an iron fist. **

**In an area earlier known as Europe,**

**different areas are now renamed. **

**One of these areas is called "Hanglin."**

**In Hanglin, there are acres. **

**Each acre has its own citizens. **

**Each acre has its own stories.**

**The acre of Tanim, is about to have its own _legend_.**

It was cold when I woke up, my covers kept me warm though. Usually I could hear my alarm, screeching like a banshee or, whatever they call it. I smashed the button down wanting to get more sleep, but once I was up… I was up.

I walked into the kitchen to begin my day, and opened the refrigerator. The cold air rushed into my face as a grabbed a jug of milk from the shelf. Suddenly I was hit with a fading agony of dizziness. I didn't know whether it was because I was so tired, or the cold, but it lasted for a torturing 3 minutes. I had to prop myself against the counter the whole time. Watching the blackness close my vision. I never noticed my younger brother walk in and grab his breakfast. I forgot, this was the time of day when he would wake up and go out with his friends to the woods. "Heje? What are you doing up so early?" he asked. "Oh, nightmare." I answered. This did not actually happen, in fact, I had no idea why I woke up so early. It seemed a logical explanation though. "oh" he muttered. "Well I'm going out, see you Heje!" right as he began to open the door, I called out to him. "Damian wait!" He turned around and raised his eyebrows. "When you see Ian can you tell him I said hi?" Damian smiled sarcastically. _"Suuuuuure."_ He ran out the door before I could tell him the rest.

"Dang!" I rushed to the door before it could close. "Damian I swear, if you do what I think you're gonna…" But there was no point. Damian was already down the road and gone. I slowly walked over to the table and sat down. My head had began to throb, and I rubbed my temples in an attempt to calm the aching down.

Soon enough my face was flat against the table, head pounding like a bass drum. Each thought of movement would spawn another pound. It took calmness, but I finally managed to get up and walk over to the counter. I open up a cabinet and pull out a bottle of pills label terribly by a piece of copy paper: "Heje" This bottle was subscribed to me years ago. I had, and still have, very frequent headaches. I unscrewed the cap and took out two pills. I took them both with a glass of warm tea.

I felt the stream fall through my throat. My father walked into the room, already with his clothes on. "Morning." I said. He scrubbed his eyes and yawned. "Morning. How long have you been up?" he asked. "Not long. Where's mom?" I responded. "She's still asleep." I rolled my eyes. "Figures" My father sat down. "Heje. I know you don't agree with your mother," he began to lecture. "but she is your mother. I need you to at least _act _like you love her." That was more than a challenge for me. I rolled my eyes again. "Yea. For what? Especially after what she did." A tear formed in both of our eyes. "Heje," My father insisted. "please don't bring that up. No one in the Riveria wants to remember that. It was sad times. Even _I _think something should have been done about it. But your mother did it for the Rules. Only for the reason she was afraid…" I had to interrupt him. "Scared? We're scared all the time because of her! She made everything worse! She made them kill innocent people! Dad don't you get it? Mom is a traitor!" my dad stood up and slammed his fist on the table. "Heje listen!" he snapped back at me. "I know all of that! But she is your mother and you will respect her, do you understand me?" I slowly sunk my head down into my cup. "Yes sir."

I didn't want to deal with this anymore. Tomorrow was the day. It was the day of shattering. The shatterings were terrible. It was when the Rules charged into each acre and stole whoever remained in their houses. We never know what they do to the people they steal. But we always pictured it was much worse for the girls. Nearly no one from my acre was ever stolen. We've learned to stay outside all day. Whoever even tried to hide would be severely punished. Which brings up my mother again. I left the room, put my boots and jacket on, and went outside. School was never in session during the winter, but I could still see the children playing on the playground. They did not completely understand the seriousness of the shattering. I really envied them, innocent, unknowing, and so young. I was beginning to become of age. In Hanglin, 17 is the maximum age before the law _forced _you to marry someone. And if you don't even have a male that likes you, they pick for you. I was nervous. I had so many things going on, the shatterings, my age, and well I don't even have a boyfriend.

I continued walking down the road. My friend Elise was also sixteen. I passed her house on the way to the park. She had always been nervous about things. Her birthday is even sooner than mine, its actually just weeks away. I can't imagine how she is right now. Probably curled up in a corner, sucking on her thumb. She would never get a boyfriend though. She was just a small bit of a lunatic.

The park's entrance was torn and destroyed, as it has been for the past 4 years. The Rules tore the park up after the riot, which was when my mother gave away the identity of our cousins. We never saw them again. I passed many burnt trees and benches. I stopped next to an old, torched, stone statue of a sculptor and his tools. That was my great grandfather; Francis. He founded this acre of Tanim. It was the only thing still standing.

A hand slapped onto my shoulder and a small scream jerked into my ear, I jumped; I was so scared. I turned around quickly and slapped whoever it was. My friend Niccoli covered his check. I boiled over. "Damnit Nicco!" I screamed. "What was that for?" He laughed a small bit. "Just a little joke." He answered. "Are you ready to go?" I stomped on his foot and crossed my arms. "I don't know if I should, you scared me just now." We were going to the old shack off the highway. Old settlers apparently haunted it from hundreds of years ago. "Oh come on," he said. "I was only getting you ready for later. You know there are ghost in there. They'll scare you more than I just did." He smirked a small bit. I smiled and turned back to him. "Thanks. Sure, I'm ready to go." Niccoli pulled a camcorder from his backpack and started walking towards the woods. He signaled for me to follow. "c'mon, we'll take the long way."

I followed him down the path. We crawled under thick briar patches, and crossed small creeks. Only after we passed a big boulder did we talk again. He asked: "So, what about tomorrow? Who do you think is going to be taken tomorrow?" I sighed. "I hope Claudia is taken. She is really just a lazy bitch sometimes." He smiled. "Me too. She just, pisses me off sometimes." I laughed. "That's another thing we agree on." I said. "Why did that have to happen?" he asked. "Why did what have to happen?" I asked him. "Why did those earthquakes have to happen? Life is terrible here. My grandmother told me what days were like back then. Sure money might have been down, but at least we had some freedom. Now we just have to follow rules." I worried for him and looked around. Checking if anyone had heard that. I knew no one could hear us, but I was cautious. "Niccoli, you know you cant think that kind of stuff! The rules would have your head!" I whispered. "Let them have it." He said. "As long as I get out of here. The only thing that's good about being here is that were not in acre 117." Acre 117 was the poorest acre in all of Hanglin. Life was terrible there. At least here we didn't die of sickness and starvation everyday. I slowly hung my head. "Nicco." I said under my breath. "We're all tired of the Rules, but the rest of us can put up with it enough not to show it in public. Just promise me when we get back you wont act like this ok? I don't think I could take it if the Rules killed you." I still agreed with him though. I despised the Rules. They were pure evil, and I hated them. Slavery was outlawed more than 240 years ago. But the Rules brought it back and use it all the time. They do whatever they please to them. And I mean _whatever _they please. The simple thought of it gave me a cold chill.

We continued walking. "Nicco, what's that?" I pointed to a black object off to the left, about an even 20 yards away. "I don't know." He answered. He eased towards it, with me behind him. We slowly approached it. A spark flew from it, landing on a blade of grass, catching it on fire. Niccoli covered his eyes with his arms. "Shit! Heje watch out!" The fire quickly spread across the woods. Trees leaped with flames. Braches fell around the object. We made a run for it.

We ran in the direction we were going before we caught sight of the object. The shack was about ten yards away when a fiery trunk of a tree separated us. I looked around in panic. Looking for a way around. There was none. I backed up, away from the fire. Smoke quickly spread across the land. I began to breath all of it.

I ran back to were Niccoli and Icame from, hopefully to get away from the cloud. I limped as fast as I could, until eventually falling to the ground. My eyes were closed. The air was thin, and the smoke consumed my lungs. I covered my mouth and nose with my shirt. The air was like poison. It had set in, and it was killing me.


	2. Heje Icanash

Corruption

Blurriness. That's all that I could see. Blackness. It surrounded me. Murmuring. That's all I could hear. Sweat. It drenched me.

Everything around me was confusion. A figure stood in front of me, still a bit blurred. "N-Nicco?" I murmured. "Heje?" I felt a hand on my chest. I felt my heartbeat bouncing off their hand. Slow as New years. "Her heart is weak. Come on Niccoli…ah!" I felt a pair of lips touch mine. I jerked up and knocked him away, spitting. "Uh, what the heck was that?" I screamed. "Mouth to mouth." He answered. "Well I was already awake." I wiped my mouth and spit again.

I curled up in a ball and leaned against the bars of wood behind me. I looked around, we were in the haunted shack. "Nicco, where are we?" I wanted clarification. "In the shack." He said. My stomach suddenly erupted with pain, and I threw up right there. _"moan" _I rested my head against the wall. "Heje," Niccoli said "I'm beginning to think we should cancel the video. You know, after all this." I clenched my stomach. "No, we can't. Our fans are counting on us. Besides, we've been planning to go here for weeks." He sighed. "Alright." I noticed a scratch on his face. "Oh my gosh, what happened?" I touched it. He covered it up, also covering my hand. "Oh, that? I had to fight off a couple of wild boars to get to you. Have you gained a few pounds? Cause…" I hit him before he could finish his sentence. "Yea, I guess I deserved that." He said as he rubbed his arm.

I slowly stood up. "C'mon, we came here for a video." He stood up and got the camera out of his pocket. I slowly walked out side so we could get a good shot of the house's outer appearance. Niccoli pointed the camera at me and started to set it up. He nodded, the official sign of "ready". I nod back. I wait until I see the red light. Then I begin.

"Hello Tanim! Heje here again and, just as we promised," I stepped to the side and opened my hand towards the shack. "The haunted house of old. Now, we know that we promised you full investigation on the house ,because it has haunted our thoughts for generations. Well, we're going to put this legend to sleep, and maybe, the spirits too. Shall we?" I put my hand on the rusty doorknob, and very slowly turned it. Just to get the most squeak out of it. Suddenly, the door breaks off the hinge and all that's keeping it up is my body, trying hard not to let it slam to the ground. "Humph, it seems the spirits don't want us in here." I smiled and lifted my eyebrows. I slowly placed the door against the wall and motioned for Niccoli to follow me.

I tried making the least possible noise that I could. Niccoli walked in with his camera, still filming. He closed the door with his foot and pointed the camera back at it. I pretended like I was surprised. "Ok, now I think they want us to stay." We both smiled.

It was getting dark, and we were only halfway through the house. I looked out of a torn piece of the wall and saw the sun going down. I looked back at the camera. "Ok guys and girls, its getting dark, and we might not be able to film at night, so we will leave this house at that and start up again tomorrow." Nick stopped the recording on the camera. "Good idea, but bad. Don't you know tomorrow is the shattering? Or did you forget?" I shook my head. "Nicco," I responded. "do you really think either of us are going to be stolen? It's been at least five years since someone from here has been taken." Niccoli laughed as I started to walk out. "Your just full of positive feelings aren't you?" I shook my head again. "Hang around me at night, you'll think differently." We entered the thick part of the woods. "I'd rather not."

The streetlights were on when we arrived back at the acre, and the sun was completely down. "Don't stay inside now Nicco" I exclaimed. "Neither do you!" We laughed as I shut the door behind me.

The lights were off as I walked through the house. I felt my way over to the cabinet, were I pulled out the matchbox and struck one of the matches against the rough side of the box. It didn't do very well, but I could at least see. I snuck my way through my house, up the stairs, and into Damian's room. I creped over to his bed and checked to see if he was asleep. He was. I slowly closed the door behind me. I took my next couple of steps and the floor squeaked. I tightened up and stood still. _They'll kill me if they found out I was gone that late. _I thought. _They might even ground me again from making my videos._ I checked to see if the coast was clear with my match. The flame was getting close to my fingers. So I walked a little faster. I darted into my room, changed into my night clothes, turned off all the lights, and pulled the covers over my body. I closed my eyes and only could feel the beating of my heart. 2 beats per second, then one, then… asleep.

When I woke up the house was quiet, just a little too quiet. I listened as hard as I could. I could only hear the sound of distant, very distant, shouting, and the sound of breaking glass. That sound reminded me, today was the shatterings. I jumped up, forgetting to change, and darted outside, only to see myself surrounded by men in brown outfits. I heard one of them speak my name.

"Heje Icanash."


	3. kidnapped

Corruption

In shock, I nodded my head. They grabbed my arms and forced me down the road for all to see, but I couldn't see anything. White, is all. I heard voices "Get in there!" Something, no doubt the men, shoves me into a large vehicle. In it, there is only darkness. All I can tell about the features of it is that it is large, very large. As if someone else was controlling me, I sat down on a long bench and starred at the wall. The door closed. I felt movement, shaking. Shaking of both the vehicle and me. I curled up into a ball on my little bench and began to cry. Silently, tears fell onto my legs. Streaming down to the floor. Suddenly the vehicle stops, and the door opens. More figures walked in, ignoring each other, ignoring me. Another girl sits next to me. She does the same thing I'm doing.

Hours pass, or maybe days. I really don't know. Light shot into the big open room. I could hear moaning. Some people must have been really that calm. To be able to sleep at a time like this. A woman walked into the room. I could barely hear her voice over my stomach. They hadn't fed us the entire time we were in here. "Alright, we will call you by acre. Sorted by distance from Rule headquarters. Lets start with acre: Tanim. Let's bring up… Heje Icanash." I stood up and slowly walked toward the opening of the door. Where as far as we knew, only existed light, blinding light. I stopped next to the woman. "Are you Heje?" she asks. I nodded. "Heje Icanash?" I nodded again. "Follow me." She says politely. I follow her. She brings me into a courtyard, full of snow and white-capped flowers. She has two guards open a full metal door to a long corridor, which each side of has at least fifty doors. She guides me all the way down the hall to the very last door to the left. She opens the door and tells me: "These is your quarters. You will spend the rest of your time here.

I walk into it, still sort of in shock. A couch seems to come out of nowhere in front of me as I trip over it. Or maybe it was there the whole time. I hold my head. The headaches were back. I pictured myself walking over to my cabinet and getting out the pills, taking them with something good to drink, but then I realized… I wasn't home. I wasn't anywhere _near_ home. The headaches got worse. The lady told me. "While I get the rest of you pathetic sum together, your care takers will get you ready for the ceremony at two-o-clock. Meet me, and the rest of your…_ friends_ in the courtyard.

_Pathetic Scum? Friends?_ I thought. _Some nerve! _I argued. _What do they think we're all related or something? That everyone knows everyone? Hell no! I didn't even recognize a single person on that thing. _

Before I can think more, I'm taken off the floor and into a back room, complete with a bed, bathroom, and closet. Almost,_ almost_, everything I had back home. They bring me towards the closet, were they strip me of my clothes, throw them away, and suit me with new ones. Those that don't fit, they toss them too. The final clothes that they fit me with are just a small brown skirt, tall brown boots, gloves, and a tight brown vest, that doesn't even cover the intersection of my breasts. "Fits good," they say. "but it could use more… _umph!"_ _Umph?_ I think. _What could they POSSIBLY think by that? I already look like a whore! _"I have an idea for that." The man says. "You just wash her down of that _filth_ and I'll add it later. _That FILTH, is the only thing left of home that I have._ They all nod, strip me naked again, and bring me into the bathroom. Into the shower I go, They bath me, scrub me, and wash me as much as they please. When one of the women gets to close to my legs, I nock her hand away. She almost immediately slaps me in the face and says: "You will be patient!" I feel a shroud of sorrow slip over me.

When I'm out, they towel dry me off, _all_ of me off. It took nearly every ounce of will I could muster to let them do that. When the four women leave, I am left alone.

Until the one man comes in, I cover up. The worst possible thought rings through my mind. _UMPH! That cant be what he meant by that!_ I close my eyes, hoping it isn't that. When I hear him talk to me, I open my eyes again and ease myself a bit. "Don't' worry," he tells me. "I'm not doing that if my _life_ depended on it." It both offended me, and made me feel a little safer. I tense-fully let him dress me back into that God-awful outfit again, and let him brush my hair. He straightens the back out and curls the front.

Suddenly, he pulls out a tray of paint, mostly white. "What the hell is that for?" I ask, trying not to receive punishment for my tone, which I fight so hard to keep back. "You'll see Heje, you'll see." _How does he already know my name?_ I think. It didn't matter. The way I'm acting right now, the entire city will know my name in the daily jail reports. I feel the sharpness of a needle jab into my arm. I began to slowly fall asleep in the chair.

Slow hours creep by, and the man is still painting me, if I hadn't have fallen asleep by now, I would have died of impatience. "Ok, you can remove the rag now." He had apparently put a rag over my face to block any paint from getting into my eyes. I remove it quickly, not being able to wait anymore. I looked into the mirror. "I really admired your stillness." He said. "You really did allow me to paint you, without resistance." If I had been awake, and aware, I definitely wouldn't have been able to hold back that resistance. Noticing where he had painted me, my eyes twitched. White paint was covering my entire torso, he painted the bottom half of my face to, adding little slash marks to look like fur. I felt my ears, which were now on the top of my head, and formed into a weird triangle shape. I felt something brush against the back of my leg, something rather furry. I turned around still looking at the mirror. Coming out of the back of my skirt, "Is that a tail!" I scream. The man nods. "Yes, took me and hour just to get it attached. _Attached? Did he…?_ I thought. "Ears too" he added. I nearly fainted. How did he do this? He gave me a _real_ tail, and actual animal ears!

He had turned me into a cat.

"Its getting to be two-o-clock," he says. "You'd better get going." I was just paralyzed right in that spot. I didn't know what to do. Eventually he had to push me out of the bathroom, out into the hallway and into the courtyard. No one was there yet.

_Thank God._ I thought. _Maybe I can have some time to get this god-damn trash off of me._

I pulled at my "ears" in an attempt to remove them, but I only felt pain. _Oh my God._ I thought._ Did they really…?_ I pulled at my tail. Pain again. _They did, they really did. They actually gave me a tail and cat ears!_ Part of me felt joy, but still sadness. I really thought it would be cool to have an actual tail, but not in these circumstances. I let go of my tail and felt it wave around. It moved too. It _was_ a tail.

Fear struck over me the second I heard the big door begin to open. _What if I'm the only one like this? What will the others think of me? That has to be them, if it isn't who would it be? Probably the man again, coming back to put on whiskers or something. _Sure enough, it was the other people, being forced by their caretakers out into the courtyard. They all starred at me, the lonesome person in the center of the grass. I starred back at them. Just the opposite of what I thought. Everyone here was turned into some sort of animal. I could see all of them, dogs, rabbits, hamsters, snakes, foxes, squirrels, even hedgehogs. Which I found ironic, that I wasn't one of those. Each person was their own animal, not one person was the same as another, at least of the same sex. I saw all the guys were dressed, or "morphed" into the same animals as other girls, but not a single other cat. Everyone came through. The same species got into groups. I was standing alone though.

Until, there! Coming out of the door at the last minute, another cat, A guy. "Sorry!" he screamed. "Sorry, did I miss…" He noticed everyone else was an animal like him. I could see relief spread across his face. He looked around and saw that all the people were separated into groups, looking at him. Then he saw me. I turned away. I heard him walking towards me. Everyone was looking at him, therefore looking at me too. I could already see where this was going.

"Meow." He said into my ear. I glanced at him for only a second, before the clock tower, visible from the courtyard, struck two. "Meow yourself." I snapped back. Just then, the intercom glared on.

"Attention! Everyone turn your attention to the southwest platform.

We all turned to see a man standing behind a podium. "Welcome to Yutoo, capitol of Rule. Here you will be kept for the rest of your mortal lives, as our slaves." We all murmured to each other. "Silence!" he screamed. "you will speak when you are spoken too." We all shut up, scared for our lives, which we predicted was going to be cut short anyway. "Now," he continued. "You will do what we say, when we say it. And you will be unpaid, only to be favored by food."

There was a long pause before he talked again.

"You are all probably wondering why we have you morphed with actual animals. Well here is your answer, you are to be grouped by your species. Another thing, there is only one of your per your gender. We had that done because you will marry the opposite gender, and you will have a child with that person." Everyone gasped. My jaw dropped. I could see the boy's next to me jaw drop. I would rather not marry at all then be forced to marry. "Your child will be raised to be a slave just like his parents. We will no longer take people straight from the acres, because we are tired of you _scum _complaining." There it was again. _Scum._ "This way, your child will have no other known way of living, therefore, no reason to complain. Today you will have the rest of the day to get to know your companion." He informed us. "Might as well going to spend the rest of your life with them." He whispered. But be up tomorrow bright and early for your first day of slavery."

He turned around and didn't say another word. Then he disappeared. The big door opened behind us.

I marched straight back to my quarters smoking mad. _How dare he. How dare he tell me who I can and cant marry. Hell, we've been under their control for the past 40 years. Why do they need to take away the very little rights we have left._ I thought as I threw myself onto my bed. I began to cry.

My face could feel the wetness of the pillow by the time I felt a hand place itself on my back. "Heje, I know this is hard for you. I have someone back in Hanglin too." the voice told me. The voice belonged to the other cat. I turned around. He looked at me. "I never got your name." I asked. It's Vok. Vok Gihjin. I sat up and leaned against the wall. "Well, we might as well start at square one." I say. "Agreed." He says back. "Where do you live exactly?" I ask him. "I live in Grebhun acre. Its about 3 or 4 acres away from the border to Fwicks." Fwicks was the acre directly north of Hanglin. "How did you find out my name?" I asked him. "Are you kidding me?" he responded. "Everyone in Hanglin knows your name. Your like, an internet sensation." I smiled. "Wow, am I really that popular?" Vok nodded his head enthusiastically. I laughed.

Hours past, and I had found out a ton about Vok. His family, his acre, who it was he actually did like back home (who he had decided to try and let go), his job, his history, even his shoe size. I truly don't even know how that was brought up. We were laughing. I stretched my arms and yawned. "You getting tired?" he asked. "I guess." I said. I got up and walked over to my closet, which only had empty hangers. "No way." I groaned. "What is it?" he asked me. "There aren't any pajamas in here!" I complained. "just go to sleep in that." I starred at him. "This?" I asked him as I lifted my skirt just a bit. "Yea." He nodded. "Vok, if I'm going to be sleeping in that bed for the rest of my life, I'm not wearing this in it." He chuckled a little. "ok, then just wear your underwear." My eyes widened. "Are you serious?" I screamed back at him. "Yes, I do it" I wave my hands around in explanation. "No, its not that, its just, _you're _here." He shook his head. "You might as well get used to it. We'll eventually have to anyway." "Now you're _trying_ to get me naked aren't you?" I snapped at him. "Yes I am!" he said excitingly. I slapped him. "Hey!" he cried. I hissed at him. Both of us jumped. I covered my mouth. _What was that? Don't you lose yourself in this cat business now Heje. Calm down. _To avoid any further argument or anymore of that, I removed my boots and shirt, then my skirt. I carefully placed my gloves on the bedside table. "I'm really sorry about that." I told him. "I don't even know where that came from!" His ears twitched a bit before he responded. "It's ok, I understand. You just lost yourself a bit. I bet I'll do it eventually too." I laid down under the covers. My tail automatically curled up between my legs. I closed my eyes and tried to fall asleep. I could feel his fingers brush through my hair. I felt a good sensation go through me. That must have been my cat half, he was after all, pretty much petting me. I breathed heavily. My breath was choppy and low pitched. "Are you purring?" he asked me. I ignored him. I was, and I didn't want him to know I wanted him the brush me. Then I felt nothing, nothing but peace.

I was asleep.


	4. The Pole

Corruption

I woke up curled into a ball, no pillow below my head, just my hand. My tail locked me into my position until it began to move again. I stretched out, exercising my fingers. I slowly got up and put my clothes back on.

I walked out into the courtyard again. Remembering the man telling me to come outside early for our first day. I was ready for the work though. Somehow, I felt like I could finish at least today. Luckily for me, I wasn't the first one out. Who else would be out but Vok? He smelled the flowers, picking them too. I walked over to him. He noticed me, and stood up. "Here you go." He says. I blushed. "For me?" I asked. He nodded. I took the flowers and smelt them. Roses. "Thank you." I told him. "How did you sleep?" he asked me. "Good. Did you wake up in that position?" I carried on. "What position?" he asked. My tail somewhat answered for me. It curled around my right leg a bit and twitched. He looked at it. "Oh, yea. I woke up in a ball." He realized. "So did I!" I exclaimed. "That's _to_ weird." He said.

Everyone else began to file into the yard.

I whispered to him: "Vok, I think they gave us more than just ears and a tail. What if they gave us more? Maybe they gave us actual cat _genes_." His was surprised. "What, no way!" "Just think about it." I told him. "Remember last night, when I hissed at you? And when you were brushing my hair, how I purred? And just this morning, how we both woke up, curled up like that?" He cupped his chin in his hand. "Yea, now that you've explained it, it is sort of weird." We looked around a little. The different species had already separated into their groups.

I saw the dogs starring at us.

I poked Vok and pointed at them. He examined them. "No, you don't think…" I cut himself off when we noticed them walking towards us. I clinched my fists. When the dogs stopped in front of us. we found ourselves on the ground, looking up at them. "What do we have here?" asked the boy. "Looks like two cats." Answers the girl. Vok glared at them. "What do you want, Nexy?" I turned back to him. "You know this girl?" He nodded. "She lives in my acre. Not to far from my house either. So what do you want? Still haven't answered me." The boy smiled. "Can't you tell? We're dogs, your cats." "Yea," I said. "What about it?" "We're only here to make sure your life here is _miserable._" Snapped the girl. "Go ahead and try it." I said. She growled at me. I hissed back at her. I flinched my hands, and drew out my "claws", which must have also been morphed to me. "Whoa, whoa!" said Vok as he held my arms back. "Don't stoop to her level Heje, it's not worth it." I very slowly eased back, still on my guard.

"Yea Heje, you wouldn't want to lose one of your nine lives!" Nexy screamed back at me. I hissed again. "Pull her back Vok! Yea, get that trash away from her!" ordered the boy. "You shut up." Ordered back Vok. "Make me!" he argued back. Vok let me go and did the same thing I did. We both hissed at them. They barked and growled at us. Right then, I was sure everyone in the courtyard was watching us.

We were at each other's throats by the time we were all forced off each other. I had scratched Nexy before we were to far away to reach. "I'll kill you!" she screamed. Vok and me were thrown into a small, dark room. But we could see fine. I began to feel guilt build up. I had lost myself too easily. Vok had put his head into his knees. A man walked into our cell. We both looked at them. "Tell me," he began. "Why did you fight those people?" I began to respond. "Sir, they threatened us, we were just defending ourselves." "I don't want to hear it." He shook his head. "I'm giving you this _one_ chance. But if I see you act up again, in the slightest way, we will have you released. Do you understand me?" We both shook our heads. "Then get back out there. And work extra time for your actions.

We both walked back out into the courtyard. Everyone was already gone. A man was standing in the middle of the walkway with a pen and paper, when we reached him, he didn't even look at us. "Name?" he asked. "Heje Icanash." I answered. "Female," he starts. "Cat, your first day is on the pole. Glenna will escort you there." A women in a big red dress came out of a door from across the courtyard. She took me by the arm and forced me to the hallway which she came from. "You disappoint me young lady. How late you are for your work. Did you know the men are beginning to throw their bottles at the stage? Waiting for you? Their waiting for their pussy cat!" she slammed at me. "Sorry, I had a little set back." I apologized. "Well sorry doesn't give the men what they want, and those set backs of yours will only get yourself killed!" I didn't say another word until she brought me behind a red curtain, where other girls were sitting at mirrors. My mind began to race, and think, recognize what was going on. But I couldn't quite put my finger on it. One of them notices me. "Finally! I've gone out like 4 extra times because you weren't here! Go, just go out there already!" Glenna pushes me towards the curtain. "Just do what they want, but trust your instincts." She tells me. My mind was still running. When she pushes me through the red curtain, I hear screaming, cheering, and whistling. Everything rushes through my mind. The pole, "young lady", Madam Glenna, mirrors, red curtain_._ For a reason, I don't think she was referring to the fact I was a cat when she said "_Pussy_ cat." And all I see is a pole. One word goes through my mind.

Prostitute. Vok found me curled up in my closet, bawling my eyes out. "Oh my God, Heje are you ok?" he asks as he knells next to me. "No." I barely get out. "What happened?" he demands. My tail rubs against his arm. He scooted closer. I cried into his shoulder. "They, they, they made me dance Vok." He looked confused. "Dance? Well that's not to bad." He says. "Pole dance." I add. "They prostituted me. They made me strip down, in front of all of those men." Vok rubbed my back. "Heje, I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine the pain you must be going through right now." His tail curled up over mine. "Why are they doing this?" I scream. "Why are they doing this to us?" I hugged him. "I don't know Heje." He said. "I don't know. But I know its hard for you. I swear, I swear I'll do anything to help you through it. Ok?" I silently nod. Vok brushes my hair again. For the first time, I felt security in his arms. I hugged him tighter, and purred for a second time. Our tails bumped against each other and twitched.

"Vok, I never even learned your age." I tell him. "16" he responds. "Yours?" "16" I repeat him. "When's your birthday" I ask him. "July 10th." He says. "No way," I smiled. "mines on the 10th too!" We both laughed. I snuggled up under his arm and leaned against him. _Safety, shelter, security_, runs through my mind. Vok, the only other person outside my family besides Niccoli that I care about, sits next to me, in a closet.

Midnight struck. Vok had gone to his quarters an hour ago. I said I needed to go to sleep. I had even curled up into a ball, because in knew I would only wake up like that anyway. But I couldn't go to sleep. Vok kept ringing through my mind. I closed my eyes, and pictured him, sitting alone at the beach with me. The water rose, and sank at our feet. The sun reflected off the water, and into his eyes. I lay against his leg, lying in the sand. He was stroking my hair like always does. The sun went down, and the sky was pinkish-orange. My stomach exceeded a weird feeling. One I had never felt before. It was stronger than the feeling of security I had before.

Far stronger, far closer than that.

I no longer felt scared, or alone. I felt connected to someone. This is what I was missing in life, this made me feel happy. This feeling, it could only be one thing.

Love.


	5. WAIT! It gets worse

** Sorry for the time it took to write this chapter. Due to some freaking computer glitches, I finished the chapter, but then had to write it again, because the file was replaced with another file. So it took me like two months to write again because my laptop kept screwing up again. And because of school. So I hope you enjoy like the 16th copy of CORRUPTION CHAPTER 5!**

Corruption

I woke up still curled up in the position. The feeling had gone away, instead replaced by loneliness and sorrow. "Vok?" I cried out. "Vok? Are you there?" it was no use, I was calling to the wind, he wasn't there. Or was he? I felt vibrations next to me. "_Moan._" I heard. "Heje? Heje what are you doing in my quarters?" I was a bit irritated. "Your quarters?" I screamed. "These are my quarters!" Vok got up out of the bed and rubbed his eyes. "Well then what am I doing in here?" he asked. "I don't know!" I screamed back.

Vok walked over to the wall and looked up at the clock. "Oh shit!." He muttered. "What is it?" I asked. "Heje, were almost late for our jobs! Get your clothes on, lets go!" With him saying that I watched him disappear out the door, and it was the first time I noticed that I was actually still in my underwear. Just like Vok had told me to sleep the first night we came here. I got up put on my rags, and hurried outside.

When I walk outside, I was lucky enough to see at least ten people still in line at the courtyard. I slipped in easily. "Meow" I hear in the back of my ear. I turn around quickly, knowing its Vok. "Meow." I say back. We move forward. "So why were you in my quarters last night," I asked him. "I thought you had gone back to your quarters." "I don't know." He says. "I do remember coming back for my medallion, but past that its pretty much blank. Oh, and you were talking in your sleep. What were you dreaming about?"

I couldn't answer that.

"Nothing." I quickly lie back. "C'mon," he insists. "I know you were dreaming something." "I'm not sure what I was dreaming about ok?" I snapped back and looked away. "Don't lie to me Heje." He says as he puts his hand on my shoulder. I blushed. "I'm not lying." I screamed. "I can tell you are!" We moved up again. I was next in line. I sighed. No reason to lie anymore. "I was dreaming of you." I said softly. "Me?" Vok asks. "Well, Us really. I blushed again. I quickly turned farther away from him. "Heje…" He starts. "Name?" The man says. "Heje Icanash." I answer. "Female" he says. "Cat, your second day is on… the stage. Just head down that hallway. I just stand there for a second. "GO!" He screams into my ear. I start walking.

Seconds down the hallway, Vok catches up with me. "Heje!" he screams. "Vok?" I look back. "What?" I ask. "Heje, I know you feel ashamed, but please listen to me. There's no reason for you to be ok?" I nod my head. "Vok, I know what your thinking, and I know you know I like you, and well… I do its just," I stuttered. "I want it to be real you know? I don't want a relationship when the rules are forcing it on us." "Heje," he interrupts me. I sit down against the wall and listen to him as he sits down next to me. "All I know is that you like me. And… heck, Heje I like you too. Is this what your heart says, that you like me?" He jabs his index finger into my chest. "Yea." I say questionably. "Then that's what you ought to do. And Heje, you say that the rules are forcing It on you, but in real life, no one can force you to fall in love, its something that just happens!" I blushed. I felt like a total idiot for thinking what I thought before. "And for me, I saw you on the dozer when we were coming here. I immediately knew that I liked you, and now that I met you, I don't just like you, I love you.

I began to cry tears of joy. "Vok! I, I love you too." I hugged him, but he immediately pried me off. "Heje, we need to get to our jobs." He says. "No Vok. Lets just stay here." "Your crazy," he sighs. "We can't do that Heje, the rules would kill us. We both stood back up. "Ok," I agree. "But hey, at least give me this." I leaned forward and kissed him. He kissed me back, and walked off. "Goodbye Heje." Goodbye! What is that supposed to mean, "Wait!" Either he ignores or he couldn't hear me. He keeps walking, and I want to run up to him and ask him, but I couldn't. I seemed to be glued to where I was standing. Vok looked back and winked at me as he walked through a door.

When he closed it behind him I felt like I seriously should have said something to him. Instead of standing and moaning by myself, I walked down the hall. It got darker and dirtier. A thick curtain was spread across to my left. A man walked past me and peered through the side of the curtain. "Whew," he says as he comes back through. "You got quiet a crowd out there, Good luck. Ha, your gonna need it." He laughs sarcastically as he disappears from my sight. I looked around for someone else. But there was no one there. The thought that no one was there to share my pain was insufferable. I held on to that dram I had the night before.

The curtain opened and my heart pounded. Knowing now that everyone was staring at me made me nearly fall to my knees. They wanted entertainment apparently, but I had no idea what to offer them. Maybe I could do what I did at the pole. But the sight of women in the crowd canceled that idea. So I went to the first course of action I could think of.

When I'm done I nearly faint. That song, that freaking song! If my parents had heard me, which is if they could recognize me as this stupid cat, heck they would have freaking killed me. I seriously could be in jail right now if I was back in Tanim. My head almost stabbed me, those headaches were back, the world spun around me, I was angry at the world right there, everything could think of, if I could think at all, happened to me right there on the stage. All I could do was stumble off stage and fall to the floor; I never even bothered to pay enough attention to check if the crowd was either booing me, or cheering me on. Dizziness hit me suddenly, and I vomited on the floor, then again, and again. "_DANG."_ I thought_ "What's wrong with me?"_ before I could think another sentence, a sharp pain hit me in the back of the head, and I passed out on the floor.

A couple months worth of dreams follow. But they were both of the same things, getting home. One of them was just me, escaping home to my family, but as soon as I arrive, I'm only greeted by men pointing guns to my head, and others to my little brother and father. The only other dream I remember is me and Vok running through woods, with lights quickly flashing behind us. Often I'd fall, and Vok would pick me back up, but it was nothing but that. Us running in seeming endless woods. I wanted to wake up and get on with my life, but I couldn't. I just kept dreaming.

When I wake up its like the freaking nightmare you have about doctors. I'm striped down to my skin and strapped to the cold, hard table below me. _"Those sick bastards!"_ I nearly scream out. _"They morph me into a cat, and they still have the guts to strip me naked? That's SICK!" _Which was weird, because this thought never came to me at the pole. "Ah, your finally awake!" I hear a man tell me in a Russian accent. Which is rare, since the quakes, all dialects have remained a constant, and dominant English. Nothing else. Maybe two or three, others but everyone talked in English.

"I needed you awake for this part." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out three or four cords, with suction cups on the tips. He stuck one on my forehead, another at the top of my chest, another on my stomach, and the last on the bottom of my foot. He walks over to a computer to my left. "ok, what are you doing?" I ask. "You'll see." He says aloud. "You piece iz derma." He mumbled. I didn't understand him, but I knew by his tone he was insulting me. "Ok Heje, breath deeply will you." I breathed. "Again." I did so.

This went on for what seemed like three hours. But I'm sure it was only a couple minutes. "Well Mncc Icanash." This guy was talking in his language like he expected everyone to know what he was saying. "I have good news." He says. _"Bad news."_ I think sarcastically. "Bbl 6epemeHHbl!" I would have slapped myself in the face if I weren't strapped to the table. _"What the heck was this guy saying!"_ I thought. The man did the deed for me. "Your pregnant you idiot!"

My whole world shattered. Everything I had ever known was gone and erased. This was a changing point in my life of course; it was an answer to my questions of my sickness. I was simply pregnant.

"_Ok Heje,"_ I told myself. _"You can do this. Yea."_ Who was I trying to fool? I knew I couldn't possibly have the courage and will to raise children.

"With twins as a matter of fact!"

"_Well, doesn't that just make it better?"_ I thought.

He typed on his computer again "Let's see, based on the data tests, the suspected father is…oh." He stops abruptly "Who is it?" I asked. All ready pretty much knowing the answer. "Well," he continues. "this wont work at all. The father seems to be Vok Gihjin but," Told you. It was Vok. "Vok Gihjin seems to be… missing." "Stop right there!" I nearly screamed. "What do you mean he's missing?" I asked. "Vok, disappeared three or four weeks ago. We assumed he escaped." Like he didn't even care, he left the room.

He unlatched me from the table before he was gone. I looked around for the door he apparently left out of, but there was none. I looked around again though, and there was a door directly behind me. I opened it, and it led me back to the hallway with all the quarters. I quickly ran back to mine, making sure no one say me naked.

The whole time I was thinking. _"Why did Vok go missing? Let's see, AH HA! He escaped, there really is no other explanation. This is what Vok meant by goodbye! He was escaping. But why didn't he take me with him? I thought he loved me. Didn't he?"_

I slowly walked into my quarters. And fell down onto my bed. _"Now I'm here alone. Great, everything is pointless now, I'll never see Vok again. He was the only reason I was able to even live here, and now he's gone. _

_My root is gone._

_ It's over here for me. There is no way I can take care of two children by myself._

I got up and walked over to the roselions Vok gave me. They were the last things I had of relation to him, so I held onto them. I thought back a couple months ago, back when I was on stage, singing that stupid song. The lyrics. Maybe Vok didn't make it, maybe the rules captured executed him. Well, maybe I'll see him again then. In the next life, but I couldn't wait that long! I have to see him now!

Now I think back way before then, before I was even shattered. How Niccoli saved me from the fire. The fire, and how it almost killed me. Maybe it could actually kill me this time.

I tightly gripped the flowers in my hand, and walked over to the lamp. I cut the wire with my claws and then walked over to the couch. I struck one end of if with the other end and created a spark, one more, and one of the tips caught on fire. I drop the wire to the ground, and it lights the carpet on fire. I laid down on top of the coffee table. I closed my eyes, but could still picture the flames rising all around me. The smoke tasted like gasoline in both my mouth and my nose. My eyes would be flooding over if they were open. I curled up in the ball I'm always in when I sleep. I clutched the roselions and slowly forgot memories.

One by one they went, I didn't even try to fight it either. I _let_ them go. The first one was Damian, running out into the streets that morning. Then the next was being thrown into the dozer, then being morphed into a cat, meeting Vok for the first time, him brushing my hair in the closet, and last… committing to Vok that I loved him. Then the only thing I saw was a thick white light.

I thought, _"Vok, I'm coming."_


	6. Dark, Damp, Prison Cell

Corruption

All that remains of my feelings is nothing. I have no feelings at all. I tried to speak, but instead got a scratchy, coarse, voicing.

That white light was still the center of my vision, but soon it was replaced by blackness. "Heje," I heard in a soft, inviting voice. "Heje, wake up. You need to wake up, right now!" I slowly opened my eyes into a hot, stinging desert. Vok, he was shaking me awake. I-I wasn't dead. But somehow, Vok found me; I did see him again. But what happened? How long has it been? Who cared? Him and me are both alive. I quickly jerked up and hugged him as tight as it could. "Oh thank God, HEJE!" he screamed. "VOK!" We held each other tight until we heard a loud squeal and an explosion behind us.

"Driver, let's go!" Vok screamed to the front of the car, in which I just now noticed, was speeding down a road. The face and voice was familiar. It was the male dog in which threw me and Vok on the ground not more than… well to ME… just a couple of days ago.

"Vok what happened to you? All I know is you disappeared and then the rules, they just forced all these things on me!" I cried on his shoulder. "Heje" he says. "Tell me, talk it out like we've been doing." I slowly wiped my eyes and choked a little. _"Calm girl, calm."_ I told myself "Vok, ok, they or… God I'm not sure how to start it." I argue. "Heje." He says. "Start when you went to the stage. Then what?" he tells me. "Ok," I said choking on myself. "I went to the stage and sang a song. Then my headaches came back and I had to leave the stage. I threw up on the floor and passed out. Next thing I know I wake up in a freaking hospital, and the doctors tell me you got me FUCKING PREGNANT! AND THEN THEY TELL ME YOU WENT AND DITCHED ME! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW I FELT? I WANTED TO KILL MYSELF VOK!" He hugged me as hard as he could, so hard I could barely breath. But I didn't hug him back, I couldn't. "I'm sorry Heje. I am, but I swear it was all worth it. Now we have you here."

"How does that make any difference? How does that change anything?" I ask. Suddenly a missile hits behind the jeep we're in. a white light, and a high pitched squeal, which both slowly faded away into a smoky sky.

"Alright she's alive. Let's get her to the hospital." Whoever it was picked me up, threw me onto a stretcher and ran." _"Vok… VOK?"_ I barley mumbled, and meowed in pure pain. I closed my eyes, I really wasn't able to see anyway. I wanted something that I could see. So I pictured, for some reason, cat food. _"God Damnit." _I think. _"They put more than just a fucking tail and ears on me. They really did turn me into a cat. I live, I breath like one. I THINK and I nearly TALK like one." _Gotta say, I actually forgot I _was_ a cat. I can feel them throwing me onto a bed and stabbing me with needles. _"Yep, definitely a hospital" _I think. I cough up some blood and am forced to open my eyes. I was in a familiar place. And right before I can determine where. The Russian man walks into the room._ "God Damn. Freaking rule headquarters."_ A little more blood came up. "You can breathe now." The man says. _"You learned some English."_ I think. "Thank you." I say out loud. One more needle will stop you from coughing up all that blood." I immediately feel a sting in the side of my arm. I want to jump up and get off the table, but knowing this is that same hospital room, I'm strapped _down_ to the table. _"Not getting up out of this anytime soon." _They unlatched the cables slung over me. _"Then again, maybe not." _

They sat me up, got me onto my feet, and immediately slapped shackles onto my ankles and wrists. Confused, I asked why. "Why are you putting shackles on me?" I asked, sort of expecting two answers. One answer for an obvious reason, and the second to know why they were using shackles that we use in our prisons back home. I mean, if Tanim uses something, Yutoo must use them too. They drug me out of the hospital, through the corridor, some people where going back to their quarters. Some were looking straight at me. When we opened the door to the courtyard I couldn't bare being drug around anymore, so I got up to my feet. I'd rather walk anyway. I didn't know where they were taking me though. They went down the hallway towards the stage, but went through a door to the right instead. The men threw me down into a dark, damp, open room. Pointless though, because they immediately picked me back up, disconnected the shackles from each other, and chained me to a wall. Then, without word, they left me.

Not too long after, they came in again and threw the female dog in with me, chained her up, and left. For some reason, I smiled. Like an instinct I extended my claws and picked the locks. I removed the metal tubes from my wrists. "Ah, that's better. At least I know why they used shackles instead of the newer handcuffs. Those things fucking hurt your wrists." I rubbed them. I walked around a little, but stopped in my tracks. _"This prison," _I thought. _"This is the same prison me and Vok were thrown into all that time ago, for when we fought with Nexy."_ I shook my head. "I really did lose my temper to easily back there. Here let me help you out of those." I walked up to Nexy and picked her locks as well. "Thank you. I don't remember your name very well. What was it?" she asked me. "Heje, Icanash" I told her. We both looked at the floor. "That's lovely." She says. "What?" I ask, a bit confused. "Your name, it's really nice." I blushed just a bit. "Thank you. I'm actually named after my grandmother." I told her. "Hey, I haven't seen you since our little… brawl. Where were you all that time?" she asked. "Oh, well, I went to my first job of course, and then the second day. Then I, I sort of passed out for a couple months. Only to wake up in the hospital find out I'm pregnant, go back to the quarters in an attempt to kill myself. Now I'm here." I tell her as I sit down in the corner. "Wait," she starts. "How did you try to kill yourself?" she asks. "Fire" I answer. "I'm probably the reason we don't have homes anymore. So go ahead, scream at me if you want to." "I'm not gonna do that." She responds.

I lick my hand and rub the back of my head. I found nothing wrong with it, but Nexy found it weird. "What the hell are you doing?" I stared at her for a second, then I went back to what I was doing. "Yo, Heje, don't be licking yourself in front of me girl, its weird" she screams at me. "Huh?" I say. "Oh sorry." I apologize. "I think the rules put more than just a tail and ears on me. Me and Vok were thinking that they actually are turning us into cats. Everyday I'm awake I act more and more like one. Strange thing is this is the same room Vok went into before he left. So how did he escape? I looked around, so did Nexy, and she spotted a window high up a wall. "There. Maybe he got out there." I look at a small window with 3 iron bars in it. "Get over there, I'll give you a boost up Nexy."

Nexy walks to the area straight under the window and I fold my hands together. She steps up and jumps into the window sill. "Can you fit through the bars?" I ask. "Easily" she yells down at me. "Here grab my hand and I'll pull you up." She offers. "I don't need it." In one single jump, I get up onto the window sill and slip out of the bars along with Nexy. "Ok Nexy thanks for that." I tell her. "You're welcome." "So what do we do now? We escaped." I asked. "I guess we go back home." She says. I take a moment to see the smoke still rising above the wall around Yutoo. I nod my head and Nexy runs off to the west. I follow her, seeing that she only lives in the acre directly above mine. I might as well travel with her for now.

But something tells me I'm not gonna travel that far. 


End file.
